AudiTeam·Audi has confirmed that Paul AronPlayer·Paul Aron will drive for the team in first practice at Barcelona and Austria, giving the Estonian two Friday sessions as the squad continues to use rookie running to manage its practice allocations. The Hinwil-based team will place Aron in the car for FP1 at Circuit de Barcelona-CatalunyaVenue·Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya before handing him another outing at the Red Bull RingVenue·Red Bull Ring two weeks later.
Aron is officially part of the AlpineTeam·Alpine setup as reserve driver, but he already has experience with AudiTeam·Audi’s organisation after completing two practice sessions last year with the then-SauberTeam·Sauber team, which has since become AudiTeam·Audi’s Formula 1Competition·Formula 1 operation. That background makes him a familiar choice for the team as it balances immediate preparation with longer-term development.
The first of those appearances comes in Barcelona, where Aron will replace Nico HülkenbergPlayer·Nico Hülkenberg for the opening 60 minutes of Friday running. In Spielberg, he will take over from Gabriel BortoletoPlayer·Gabriel Bortoleto. As a result, both of AudiTeam·Audi’s race drivers will each miss one additional practice session before the end of the season, a consequence of teams using mandated opportunities to run rookies.
AudiTeam·Audi’s announcement also places Aron among a wider group of confirmed rookies for FP1 in Barcelona this weekend. He is the fifth young driver set for the session, alongside Luke BrowningPlayer·Luke Browning for WilliamsTeam·Williams, Leonardo FornaroliPlayer·Leonardo Fornaroli for McLarenTeam·McLaren, Frederik VestiPlayer·Frederik Vesti for MercedesTeam·Mercedes and Colton HertaPlayer·Colton Herta for CadillacTeam·Cadillac.
The decision carries practical and strategic value for AudiTeam·Audi. Friday practice in modern Formula 1Competition·Formula 1 is limited, and rookie sessions are one of the few ways teams can evaluate emerging talent in real race-weekend conditions without disrupting the competitive core of the programme. For AudiTeam·Audi, Aron’s outings offer another measured look at a driver who remains part of the wider junior conversation while also reinforcing the team’s approach to talent management.
For Aron, the two appearances represent another chance to build mileage in a competitive car and strengthen his case for future opportunities. For AudiTeam·Audi, they add another data point in a season shaped not only by race weekends, but by the way teams prepare for the next ones.
Nico Hulkenberg (Audi F1 Team) and Franco Colapinto (Alpine F1 Team) race during a Grand Prix. (PsnewZ/IMAGO)
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